- Lucia Valentini Terrani
Lucia Valentini Terrani (
August 28 ,1946 ,Padua -June 11 ,1998 ,Seattle ) was an Italiancoloratura mezzo-soprano , particularly associated withRossini roles.Life and career
Born Lucia Valentini, she studied first at the Padua Music Conservatory, and later at the Accademia Benedetto Marcello in Venice. She made her stage debut in Brescia, as Angelina in "
La cenerentola ", a role she will remain closely associated with throughout her career.She made her debut atLa Scala in 1973, again as Angelina, and quickly established herself in the Rossini repertoire, singing in "L'italiana in Algeri ", "Il barbiere di Siviglia ", "Il viaggio a Reims ". She also sang the many "trouser roles" such as "Tancredi ", Malcolm in "La donna del lago ", Pippo in "La gazza ladra , "Calbo in "Maometto secondo , "Arsace in "Semiramide ", Isolier in "Le comte Ory ", etc. She also sang a few roles of thebaroque repertory, notabyMonteverdi 's "L'Orfeo ", and Bradamante inHandel 's "Alcina ". However, she did not restrict herself to the belcanto and expanded her repertoire to include roles such as Dorabella, Eboli, Quickly,Mignon , Octavian, Charlotte, Dulcinée.She enjoyed a very successfull international career, appearing in Paris, London, Moscow, Buenos Aires, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, etc. She made her
Metropolitan Opera debut in 1974, as Angelina (Cenerentola).Valentini married Italian actor Alberto Terrani in 1973, and added his surname to hers. She was diagnozed with
leukemia in 1996, and went to the famousFred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle for treatment, where her colleage and friendJosé Carreras was treated for the same affliction. Sadly she was not as lucky as Carreras, and died of complications following abone marrow transplant at the age of 51.One of the leading contemporary Italian coloratura mezzo, she had a rich,creamy and agile voice used with fine musicianship, and had a good stage presence.
ources
* "Le guide de l'opéra, les indispensables de la musique", R. Mancin & J-J. Rouvereux, (Fayard, 1986), ISBN 2-213-01563
* "Opera News", [http://www.metoperafamily.org/operanews/_archive/898/Obits.898.html Obituaries] , August 1998
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